(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a display and a printer as one unit.
(2) Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a printer with a display has been used in various shops such as convenience stores, supermarkets and travel agencies. The printer with a display can display an image to be printed on the display, and output a recording sheet with the image printed thereon.
The printer has a function to obtain a desired print-target image from a network such as the Internet, to which the printer is connected, and display the obtained image on the display, and a function to store service information (for example, introduction of new products, information on events or new movies, recipes, or surrounding map), which is supplied to users as a service, in advance in a memory or the like, and display the service information on the display.
FIG. 14 illustrates a specific example of a printer with a display (see Japanese design registration No. 1391296). In the printer illustrated in FIG. 14, a touch panel is attached to a display 1401, and the user can instruct the printer to display a desired image on the display 1401 and output a recording sheet with the image printed thereon from an outlet 1402 by inputting instructions into the printer via the touch panel.
However, the above-described printer with a display has a problem that, since it does not include a paper tray and an outlet is provided below the display, if a recording sheet with an image printed thereon is ejected while the user is seeing the display screen in front of the printer, the user may not recognize the ejection of the recording sheet, and the recording sheet may drop onto the floor and be smeared. Furthermore, since the recording sheet is ejected forward of the printer, the ejected recording sheet may collide with the body of the user standing in front of the printer, and be bent.
In view of this problem, a paper tray may be provided to prevent the recording sheet from falling onto the floor. However, since the paper tray would stick out from the front of the printer, it would be an obstruction to the user operating the display, thereby impairing the operability.